Portrait of a Man

‘The support consists of two beech wood planks glued at the join and it’s dimensions correspond with the Standard Format C, frequently used by Cranach and his workshop. The join has been covered with a fibrous material’

[Heydenreich 2010 A, 73]

'white ground'

[Heydenreich 2010 A, 74]

'Underdrawing executed in a black fluid medium. It is restricted to the contours and some very cursory details. Two characters in the area of the white shirt and the red undergarment are particularly striking. The Z shaped markings correspond to the letter ‘r’ in Cranach’s and other contemporaries handwriting and stands for red. A ‘h’ shaped letter represents a ‘w’ and stands for white. The letters indicate the colour of the garments. Similar colour indicators for clothing are not unusual in 16th century paintings. However this is the first example found on a painting by Cranach.'

[Heydenreich 2010 A, 74]

'The hair on the beard is initially applied with uncertainty and was corrected by a practiced hand. The contours of the eyes and lips were also corrected at a later stage.

The background is executed in blue paint in two layers. The first layer is quite smooth whereas the second layer exhibits the visible structure of the brushstrokes. One may assume that this second layer is not original, however in some places the sitter’s hair is competently painted over it.

There is nothing to suggest that the artist’s insignia is of a later date as the black paint has not run into the cracks in the cracquellee. However the insignia and the style of the figures are significantly different from other Cranach paintings of a similar date.'

[Heydenreich 2010 A, 74]

'Examination in infrared showed that originally an inscription in black paint ran across the top of the panel. With the exception of a few remaining traces it has been completely erased and is today no longer legible. It also revealed (as did the x-radiograph) traces of a large painted shield in the bottom righthand quarter of the painting. This was later covered over with reddish brown paint. These measures suggest a deliberate desire to erase the identity of the sitter.'

[Heydenreich 2010 A, 74]

DESCRIPTION

Tools/Materials:

- fluid, black pigmented medium

Type/Ductus:

- both traced and freehand underdrawing

- thin lines

Function:

- relatively binding for the final painted version; lines delineate contours; no representation of volume

Deviations:

- minor alterations made during the painting process to clearly define form

INTERPRETATION

Attribution:

- not possible

Comments:

- probably transferred from a preparatory drawing

[Smith, Sandner, Heydenreich, cda 2012]